| Abstract: | Manufacturing is a complex application domain, traditionally a realm of engineers and factory workers. As we are in the information age, the manufacturing domain has become more dependent on information through the use of computers and computer‐controlled machines. In the arena of advanced manufacturing, a number of concepts such as the “virtual corporation”; and “virtual factory”; have emerged, requiring that manufacturing be highly information‐intensive and knowledge‐based. This article examines the role of the information infrastructure and explores the use of intelligent agents in its implementation for advanced manufacturing enterprises. The information infrastructure forms a complex hierarchy of distributed, heterogeneous information systems. Intelligent agents play various roles at different levels of the hierarchy to provide interoperability, reliability, programma‐bility, and controllability. |
